Easing Her Nightmares (StormWolfsong & MysticSparxman)

Kaia Denton had been traveling for the last seven weeks, her funds were running low which worried her but she was determined to keep going. She would not risk being caught and getting sent back home to her father. She was afraid that if she did, the next beating she took from Hank would end her life. The fifteen year old had no idea what had happened to her mother, her father claimed her mom had left them but the more she had suffered under his fists and hands causing her pain, the more she wondered. Had her father killed her mother? Had her mother willingly left her with a man that would beat her? Kaia figured one day she might find out. But, for now her biggest focus was on surviving.

Over the last few weeks she had begun to eat less, trying to save her money as much as she could. She was lucky she had been hiding away the money in the first place, if she hadn’t then she wouldn’t have made it this long. However in the weather she was now caught in she didn’t know if she would make it longer. She was regretting not going with that last person who offered her a ride since it was half an hour later when the storm that had been threatening for nearly two days finally broke. Within moments she was soaked, her red hair matted against her neck and drops of water nearly blinding her as the rain got worse. Still, she continued to trudge along the deserted rode, unaware how much further she needed to go to the next store.

When the wind picked up, driving the rain into battering her soft skin and causing visibility to be threatened further, she turned on the nearest path she saw and hoped it led somewhere safe. She couldn’t say how far she walked away from the road before she thought she saw shelter and with each tired step she took, she watched it get closer. She hadn’t slept much, the nightmares always waking her, it made her body even weaker than the lack of food.

Finally coming to a covered porch she tripped over the first stair and ended up crawling up the rest of the way, moving to huddle further on the porch out of the rain. She barely made it before blackness swept in and took her, her final thought was a prayer that she lived through the night.

She had no way of knowing how long she slept or where she was when the nightmare hit and she screamed in her sleep, thrashing about as though trying to ward something off and run at the same time. “No, please!” She cried in her sleep, tears sliding down her pale cheeks. “No more! I’ll be good!” Her cries became softer but continual, whimpers as though remembered pain was being relived.

Harley Saunders had been quite busy over the past week. Not only had he recently celebrated his 22nd birthday, but he had also moved out on his own. Using some of the money that had been left for him, Harley purchased a house that was just on the outskirts of town. It was a relatively nice house that he had spotted some time ago, and luckily for him, it was quite private too as it sat at the end of a rather long driveway. Well, Harley considered it to be private anyway, and it was just what he was looking for, which was exactly why he hadn’t wasted any time in contacting the previous owner who was selling the house. If Harley was honest with himself, he really hadn’t expected his offer to be accepted, so it was safe to say that he was more than surprised when he was told that his offer had been accepted and he had managed to get the house. Harley felt overjoyed at the news and really couldn’t wait until he was finally able to move into his new home.

Harley stood at an even 6ft, and he had a slim yet muscular build. He wasn’t too muscly and he also wasn’t too skinny. Harley always made sure that he took care of himself by keeping in shape and eating right. He also liked to play his fair share of sports whenever he could. Now, since he was busy moving into his new home, he was unable to play any sports until he was all moved in. After all, Harley knew that he would only get distracted if he were to do anything else, which meant it would take him longer to move in than what he would have wanted. There again, he knew that he was going to have a lot of things to move in anyway, so he had a feeling it was going to take him some time, but he wasn’t too bothered by it. He was just glad to be moving into his own home finally.

After catching news about the storm on the weather reports, Harley had wanted to get all of his stuff moved into his new home before the storm finally hit. The simple reason for this was the fact that he just didn’t really want any of his stuff to get ruined. The weather reports had stated that the storm would hit anytime within two days, so Harley knew he was going to have to get his stuff moved in and quick. It was exactly why that was the only thing Harley focused on within those two days. During the time in which he was moving his stuff into his new home, he would always be sure to keep an eye on the sky, just in case the storm was on its way. There were a number of times when it did look as if the storm was going to break, but luckily for Harley, it didn’t. Harley felt really glad when he was finally able to get all of his stuff inside his new home. What was even better was the fact that the storm still hadn’t come by the time he had managed to get all of his stuff inside.

Once he had gotten everything inside, Harley set about putting everything in place around his new home. This was something that took him a few hours, considering how much things he had with him. When he was finally done, he sat down on his couch, sighing with relief that everything was finally done. There was a smile on his face as he leaned back into his couch, and as he did, he took a look around his new living room, smiling in approval. ”Hmm, I think I’ve done a good job.” He said somewhat proudly to himself. Harley settled back into his couch a bit, picked up his television remote and turned on his television so he could find something worth watching. As it usually would, it took him a while before he was able to find something worth watching.

Eventually, the storm finally hit, and Harley couldn’t help but feel glad he was in when it did. Hours passed and Harley continued to watch his television, but in the end, he found it increasingly difficult to keep his eyes open. Harley rose to his feet and turned off his television after he couldn’t stop yawning. After he had turned off the television, he walked from the living room, and he was about to head up the stairs when something made him stop. He couldn’t be sure, but he almost thought as if he had heard something coming from outside. Staying where he was, he listened as hard as he could for whatever he may or may not have heard outside. He didn’t have to wait too long as he heard it again a few seconds later. ”Hmm, what’s that?” Harley walked towards his front door, slowly pulling it open when he got there. He really wasn’t too sure what he was expecting to find, if anything, but it was safe to say that he certainly wasn’t expecting to find what he found out on his porch. His eyes widened considerably as he saw a young girl unconscious and soaking wet on his porch. With no idea how she got there, Harley knew he couldn’t leave her there, so he rushed outside and quickly scooped her up in his arms. After doing so, he turned around and headed back inside, kicking his door closed.

The first thing Harley did was to head straight upstairs with the unknown girl in his arms. He took her straight through to the spare bedroom that he had in his home, and he walked over to the bed. Once there, he set the girl down on the bed and pulled back the blankets. After doing so, Harley looked down at the girl. ”I better get her out of these soaking wet clothes.” Shortly after the words had left his mouth, Harley started to carefully remove the girl’s wet clothing. The first thing he did was to remove her wet shoes, which he placed on the floor. After he had removed her shoes, he proceeded to remove her wet top which also ended up on the floor. Once he had removed her top, he placed his hand gently on her back and sat her up so he could remove her bra, which had also gotten wet. Harley gulped a little bit when he saw the young girl’s bare breasts, but he knew it would be wrong to do anything. Setting her wet bra down on the floor along with her other clothes, Harley was very careful as he removed her bottoms and panties. Covering her over with the blankets, he picked up her wet clothes and walked out of the room. He took her wet clothes downstairs and stuck them straight into the washing machine. Leaving her clothes to wash in the washing machine, he headed back upstairs, stopping off at the bathroom to pick up a towel. With the towel in hand, he headed back into the bedroom where he had left the girl. As he sat down on the edge of the bed he had placed her in, he pulled back the blankets once again and he started to dry the girl. As he had done when he had removed her bra, he sat her up with one hand on her back, and then he started to dry her hair. It took him a few minutes to dry her hair, and as soon as he had dried her hair, he started to dry her body. He started off by drying her neck and back, and then as he started drying her front, his fingers brushed over the edge of her breast ever so slightly. Harley felt his cock stir, but did his best to ignore it as he continued to dry the girl. He dried her breasts, face and stomach, and then he started to dry her lower half. Just as he started drying her lower half, he stopped to take a deep breath as he caught a glimpse of her pussy. Shaking off any urges he may have been getting, he started drying her legs, also drying her pussy too. It took him a further five minutes before he had finished drying her completely. As soon as he was done, he pulled the blankets up to her shoulders and got to his feet. Harley made sure to take the wet towel with him as he left the room, intent on checking back in on the girl every so often. Luckily for him, his bedroom was right next door anyway, so he wouldn’t have too far to go. After dumping the wet towel back in the bathroom, Harley headed down to his room. Once he made it into his room, he got out of his clothes, staying in just his boxers as he proceeded to climb into his bed.

Kaia tossed and turned, the blankets placed over her began to get kicked off as she cried out in her sleep, the memories assaulting her exhausted mind. “Stop!” Her voice hoarsely screamed out as she fought with her father in her dark dreams, trying to keep him from landing good blows.

Her father grabbed her wrists so hard she knew they would bruise again. He pinned them above her head, holding them with ease in one hand as he smacked her across the face hard enough she felt her lip split against her tooth. Crying out, she struggled to get free, tears falling down her cheeks, as she kicked with her legs, pushed with her arms and tried desperately to get loose. “Don’t daddy, please… I’ll do what you asked, I promise.” She cried out, though she knew that doing so would have no effect when her father got in this mood.

Kaia hadn’t done anything to deserve this, another hand connecting with her face snapped her head to the side and made her ears ring. Light flashed behind her eyes and she shook with the fear of more to come. Closing her eyes, she tried desperately not to tense for the next blow knowing by now that each time another one fell it hurt worse when she was tense.

The fist that connected with her side caused her to gasp for breath, then his hand was gone from her wrists and instead she felt it pressing against her throat. “You’re a whore just like your mother was. She up and leaves me with a little slut to raise, nothing but trouble.” The alcohol in his breath was choking her just as badly as his hand which hers moved to her neck to try and remove.

Her hands were at her throat as though struggling to remove her hand as she gasped for breath and fought in her nightmare to be released from the pressure, tears falling more freely from her eyes as she whimpered in her sleep.

Harley had settled down into his bed and he didn’t go to sleep straight away. Firstly, he wasn’t too tired, so he just rested his head against his pillow and put his hands behind his head as he looked up towards his ceiling. As he did, his thoughts went back to the girl that he had found. Harley had absolutely no idea who she was or where she had come from, but he figured it would have been better to ask her in the morning. So, that’s what he decided he was going to do. Still, he couldn’t help but how long she had been out there, especially when he thought about how wet her clothes were when he had found her. He figured she must have been out there for quite some time if she had gotten that wet. ”Hmm, I wonder who she is and where she came from?” He muttered to himself as he stared up at the ceiling. Harley honestly didn’t know what he was going to do with the girl when she woke up in the morning. The only thing he did know was that he was going to have to find out whether she was just lost or if she had any parents she could go back to. Either way, he knew it was going to have to wait until the morning when he was hoping she would be feeling well enough to talk to him.

A yawn escaped his lips, and then he rubbed his eyes a few times as he started to feel tired. Harley was just about to turn over on his side to go to sleep when he was sure he heard something coming from the other room. He couldn’t be sure, but it almost sounded like a scream. At first, he didn’t think too much of it, and he closed his eyes, but a few seconds later, he heard something again. This caused him to open his eyes and sit up. Harley listened closely and soon he was able to hear it more clearly. It sounded like the girl may have been having a nightmare, and it sounded like quite a bad one too. Of course he was tempted just to leave her and hope that her nightmare would stop soon enough, but then he knew just how bad some nightmares could be, and he also knew just how long some of them could last. It was as he was thinking about this that he finally decided what he was going to do.

Pushing his blankets down to the bottom of his bed, he swung his legs off the side of his bed and got to his feet. He quietly walked from his bedroom and stopped just outside the door of the room the girl was staying in. Slowly, he pushed open the door and looked inside. As his eyes came to rest on the girl, he could see that she was indeed having a nightmare, and it must have been a really bad one too. Of course he was only able to come to this conclusion after seeing her hands around her throat and tears falling down her cheeks. ”Poor girl.” He whispered to himself as he stepped into her room. He was quiet as he made his way over to her bed. When he reached her bed, he stopped and looked down at her for a few moments. He knew that it wasn’t such a good idea to try to wake her up from her nightmare. With a deep breath, he leaned over her and gently removed her hands from around her throat, placing them down by her sides. After doing so, he pulled back her blankets a little bit and then he climbed into the bed besides her. Harley pulled the blankets back up to their shoulders, and then he turned on his side and wiped the tears from her cheeks. Resting his head on the pillow, he started to gently run his fingers through her hair in an attempt to ease her nightmares. ”Shhh….it’s okay.” He whispered to her as his fingers continued to move softly through her hair.

Kaia tossed and turned her eyes still filled with tears as she sobbed, her nails had dug into her neck a bit leaving small scratches along it even as in her sleep she was unaware of her hands being drawn away. Instead, in her sleep she began fighting trying to push away as she felt something close to her. "No, daddy please don't, it hurts."

With the light stroking in her hair she slowly began to settle though the tears continued for several more minutes. When her sobs quieted she turned on her side and burrowed her body against the warmth still in the depths of sleep. An arm fell lazily over the form in the bed though still in her sleep she was unaware that she had moved in close to an actual near naked body. Her breasts were now firmly pressed between them, her leg shifted to wrap around his legs though her lower body wasn't pressed as closely.

In her sleep which slowly became peaceful she shifted against the body, her breathing finally becoming normal as she settled in and after a total of half an hour since her hands were moved from her throat she seemed to be out of the woods of the nightmare. If there was enough light there was a chance he might see the last of the fading bruises on her side and shoulder from the latest beating her father had given her before she had run.

Harley couldn’t stop himself from wondering exactly what had happened to the girl when she had tried fighting him as he had moved her hands away from her neck. When he heard her mention her father, it really did make him wonder what she had been through. Either way, he knew it couldn’t be good otherwise he knew she probably wouldn’t have run away in the first place. Still, he figured he could always wait until the morning to ask her a few questions. Harley just didn’t know if she was actually going to be willing to answer any questions he might have for her. More importantly, since she had been unconscious since arriving on his doorstep, he had no idea how she was going to react to him when she finally woke up. There was something telling him that she wasn’t going to react too well to him. Something told him she was most likely going to be afraid of him for one reason or another, even though he was hoping this wasn’t going to be the case. All he really wanted to do for the time being was to get her settled down for the rest of the night. He had a feeling that leaving her wouldn’t be such a good idea as he simply thought her nightmares might start up again if he left, so Harley decided that he would stay with her for the rest of the night.

Harley was glad when the girl had finally begun to settle down as he had continued to lightly stroke her hair in a calming manner. He was glad that she was settling down, but what he hadn’t expected her to do was turn on her side to face him. It was only when she burrowed her body against his that he remembered how she was naked. Of course he had only remembered this when he had felt her bare breasts pressing up against his chest. It was soon after this that he felt her leg wrapping around his legs, and he had to do all that he could to concentrate so he wouldn’t get himself turned on. After all he was only wearing a pair of boxers and she wasn’t wearing anything at all. Still, he remained where he was and his fingers continued to stroke lightly through her hair. Harley was just hoping that he wouldn’t lose too much focus and allow himself to get turned on. That really was the last thing he needed right now. Besides, he knew it would be wrong to take advantage of a girl when she was sleeping. Not that he imagined himself doing such a thing anyway.

As she had finally settled down in her sleep, Harley didn’t stop letting his fingers stroke lightly through her hair and as his eyes came to rest on her, he furrowed his brows slightly when he thought he saw what looked like bruises on her side and shoulder. There was a little bit of moonlight filtering in through the window which was why he was able to see what he thought were bruises. He could see how they were fading, so it made him think they must have been there for some time. Seeing her bruises only raised more questions within his mind. As his fingers had continued to move softly through her hair, he draped his other arm gently around her waist. Harley was tempted to just close his eyes and fall asleep, but then he didn’t think falling asleep yet would be such a great idea. As tired as he may have been feeling, he decided to stay awake a little longer just to make sure she was okay as she slept. As he lay awake, his eyes remained on the girl as she slept as he remained ever curious about her.

Kaia sighed in her sleep, squirming to get comfortable, closer to the warmth. Every once in a while she shivered or muttered something unintelligible as she pressed closer. In her exhausted state she believed she was just cuddling closer to her body pillow which had been the last gift she had been given by one of her friends a few months before the beatings from her father had worsened.

Sometime through the night she turned so her back was settled against the warmth and fell into a deeper, more peaceful sleep. Hours later, her mind began to drift from sleep to waking, her body shifting and she felt something against her back and something against her rear that didn't feel right. The heaviness of an arm around her caused her eyes to snap open and she stiffened, holding her breath.

It took several seconds for her to process what she was seeing, feeling and more importantly that she was completely naked and there was someone in a strange bed with her. Strange bed? She began remembering that she had seen a house, it was huge but what was important to her was that there was a porch, she had just wanted to get out of the rain, try to get warm and then she had collapsed.

She sat up sharply, regretting it as waves of nausea and dizziness swept over her and she ended up bent over, her head in her hands as she groaned. She was sore, still felt a bit weak and tired. "Where?" She croaked, her throat hoarse and dry. She swallowed a couple of times before she tried again, gathering the blanket to cover her as best as she could as she tensed, not looking toward the body, praying it wasn't her father, that he hadn't found her. "Where am I?"

She wasn't even aware that this view would afford whoever it was a good site of her back, lower and the upper part of her ass that her lower back connected to. She couldn't even think on that. Her stomach growled, her head ached, she still felt a bit ill. If her father had found her that would be the least of her problems in just a few minutes.

Despite how tired he had been feeling, Harley did his best not to fall asleep straight away. Sure, he may have been tired, but he also didn’t want to fall asleep only for her to have yet another nightmare. It was very difficult for him, but he was able to stay awake and watch her for at least the next two hours. In all that time, Harley was glad that she had managed to fall into a deeper sleep, and it was even better to see how she hadn’t had any more nightmares in that time either. When he was certain that she was going to be okay, Harley eventually closed his eyes and finally gave into his tiredness and fell asleep.

It was only an hour or so later that mysterious girl in the bed had stirred. Harley remained in a deep sleep as she had finally woken up, and even as she had removed his arm from around her waist, he still didn’t wake up. He did stir a little bit in the bed, pulling his arm up and underneath the pillow, and then he buried his head a little deeper into the pillow some more.

The only time Harley was pulled from his sleep was when the girl had pulled on the blankets, gathering them together to cover herself up. The sudden drop in temperature caused him to groan a little bit. Harley’s eyes slowly started to flicker open. He shifted some more in the bed, turning over onto his stomach, still facing the girl as she had her back to him. Finally opening his eyes, he blinked a few times just to focus in the darkness that was still in the room. It took him a few moments before his eyes had adjusted to the dark, and when they had done, he finally saw the girl sitting up with her back to him.

At first, he didn’t immediately put two and two together, and he looked back to where she had been sleeping, and he noticed that she wasn’t there. It was only at this point that he finally realized that the girl sitting up in the bed was also the same girl he had been watching for hours. Harley sat up in the bed and rubbed his eyes a few times, before he placed a hand over his mouth to stifle a yawn. He looked back to the girl again. ”You are in my home. I found you out on my porch a few hours ago. I uhh….had to get you out of your clothes because there was the chance that you would have caught a terrible fever if you had remained in those clothes. I put your clothes in the washing machine for you.” He spoke in a relatively soft tone as he had said this to her.

Harley took a deep breath as he was looking at her back. As he was looking at her back, he soon saw the upper part of her ass, even though he hadn’t actually meant to look. ”Don’t worry as you are perfectly safe here. I’m not going to hurt you, and I don’t know what you are running away from, but I heard you as you were having a nightmare. It was why I came in here as your nightmare was getting really bad. Anyway…umm..do you have a name? My name is Harley.” He didn’t really expect her to give him her name, but he didn’t think it would hurt to ask.

Kaia felt at first relief when she heard the voice beside her, it wasn't her father. Thank God! Then she thought about how the man had stripped her down and blushed, her face hidden in her hands as she tried to get a grip on the nausea. He mentioned a fever and she wondered if maybe she might be a little ill from her soaking or if it was just a carry over from the exhaustion and the little food she had eaten recently. Very slowly, still afraid that maybe her ears were deceiving her and she would find that it really was her father beside her, she turned her head to look at the stranger. Her blue eyes were dark, shadowed and haunted as she searched the man's expression for any sign of malice. Her fear was evident, as though she was waiting for him to strike out at her.

She hugged herself even tighter not taking her eyes off him as he mentioned being safe and what she was running from, her nightmare and then asked her name. When he told her his, she was silent for several long moments, her eyes misting with tears, "Kaia," she finally whispered. It was as though all the strength was used up as the teen's grip on her legs released and she collapsed back on the pillow, laying on her back. For a moment it gave a perfect glimpse of her breasts and the treasure between her legs before she managed to draw the blankets back up as she turned her head to look at him, "I'm sorry... I... please don't call the authorities... I can't go back there."

Kaia couldn't stop herself from pleading as she turned on her side to face him, her red hair framing her face as a sob wracked her frame. "I'll... I'll pay you back somehow... and I'll leave as soon... as soon as I can... I don't want... I don't want to be trouble... I just can't go back... I can't... I won't... I won't survive..." All her fears came pouring out and she knew she shouldn't risk it but at this moment she was the most vulnerable she had ever been, this man held her life in his hands literally. One call could determine whether she lived or died. Her father's next beating would surely kill her especially with how angry he would be over her running away from him after what she'd done to protect herself.

Harley didn’t know anything about the girl he had found on his porch. Still, after seeing the bruises on her body, something told him that she was running away from something or someone quite terrible. When he had told her his name, he didn’t really know if she would tell him her name in return, but he did hope she would. Harley remained where he was in the bed and his eyes remained on the girl as she had hugged herself tighter than before. When she had looked back to him, he could see the tears forming in her eyes and he could see that she was upset about something. He smiled a little bit and nodded his head when she finally did tell him her name. ”Kaia? That’s a nice name.” He spoke in a soft yet friendly tone as he had said this to her. He was still sat up in the bed as she had laid back down in the bed, and when she did, he caught a brief glimpse of her breasts before she pulled the blanket back up to her shoulders. Some confusion could be seen on his face as she had apologized and asked him not to call the authorities. ”Hey, I’m not going to call anyone right now. It’s way too late to call anybody, but I won’t call anyone you don’t want me to…..and what do you mean you can’t go back there? Can’t go back where?”

As she had turned on her side to face him, Harley adjusted his position so he was facing her some more. A look of concern formed on his face as she told him how she wouldn’t survive if she went back. Still, he didn’t know what place she didn’t want to go back to. ”No, you don’t have to pay me back for anything Kaia, and you’re really no trouble at all.” He managed a small smile. ”I admit I didn’t expect to find you out on my porch, but I’m not going to throw you out if you don’t have anywhere else to go. If you were to leave here, then there’s no other house for a few miles….but what do you mean you won’t survive if you go back? What are you afraid to go back to?” His voice was a soft whisper, but it was still full of concern for her. ”Has it got something to do with your nightmares?” He asked in a curious tone. ”You were talking in your sleep during your nightmare and…..you spoke about your…..father.” He didn’t really know if he was pushing things too far by mentioning her father, but at the same time, he still knew that he had to ask her. ”You really don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to okay.”

Looking down at her, Harley pulled his knees up to his chest. ”I don’t know what you’ve been through Kaia….but umm…..when you were sleeping….I saw the bruises on your shoulder and side.” His voice had grown softer now. ”Is that why you ran away? Were you running away from a violent partner or something? Is that why you don’t want me to call the authorities? Because you can’t let someone get away with being violent towards you. The authorities would be on your side if I were to call them for you.” He paused for a moment before taking a deep breath. ”Are you certain that you don’t want me to call the authorities?” He asked in a curious tone, even though there was a small part of him that already felt as if he may have known the answer already. ”Oh…umm, how are you feeling Kaia? You don’t look too good at the moment. Would you like a glass of water or something?”

Kaia was quiet for several minutes as she listened to Harley as he asked his questions and made his assurances. "I can't go home, Harley. No matter what was said or done, the law would make me go back... he's..." She shook her head sadly and looked away from the man who was being so kind to her that she didn't know how she would ever repay him. If he was true to his word, she would be safe and free.

When he said he wouldn't throw her out without somewhere to go, she turned back to look at him, surprise evident in her expression as she continued to listen to him. Then he asked after her nightmares and she tensed, her body shook as her tears fell lightly down her cheeks. She shook her head, "It wasn't a partner..." Her voice was soft and her voice trembled with the words.

"I beg of you Harley, don't call them... if I end up forced to go back home, my father will kill me. Those bruises... I am hoping are the last I ever have to carry. I would rather die free then with the pain he'll put me through." Her words ended on a sob and she would have lifted her hands to cover her face but she felt weak and cold.

When he asked after how she was feeling she gave a weak laugh and shook her head, "I'm fine," she said her voice shaky, "just a little cold. Probably still the effects of being drenched and traveling. I was running for a few days with little food or rest. I'm just paying for it." She was still shivering under the covers and trying to fight back her tears as she added a soft, "Thank you, Harley. Thank you for bringing me in and caring for me despite knowing nothing about me. It is a kindness I don't... I don't deserve."

Because Harley had never really had much involvement with the law before, he had never really fully understood how they may have dealt with something like this. It was why he felt surprised when she told him how they would have made her go back home if he were to call them. Hearing her say this caused him to shake his head back and forth a few times. ”No, they wouldn’t make you go back, would they?” The surprise could be heard in his voice as he had asked the question. ”If they knew the situation, I’m certain they wouldn’t make you go back to a place like that. They would put you in some sort of protection. They wouldn’t make you go back there….at least I don’t think they would.” Harley genuinely didn’t know if the law would make her go back to her father. It was for this reason that he felt as torn as he did. On the one hand, he did want to call the police to tell them about what had happened to Kaia, but on the other hand, he didn’t want to call them just in case the girl was actually right. Harley wasn’t too sure what to do. He could either listen to his head or to his heart. His head was telling him to call the police and report whoever did this to the police, but then his heart was telling him not to call them.

When she told him that it wasn’t a partner who did this to her, it started to make him think that it really could have been her father. This was only confirmed for him when he heard what she said next. There was a look of shock on his face as he found it hard to believe that a father could do such a thing to his own flesh and blood. ”I’m in two minds as to whether to call them Kaia, I really am.” He ran a hand slowly through his hair as he sighed to himself a little. ”My head is telling me to call the police to tell them what your father has been doing to you…..but then my heart is telling me not to call them just in case they really do force you to go back there.” Harley clearly sounded confused and unsure as to what he should do. ”It’s not right that a father could do this to his child and he shouldn’t be allowed to get away with it….but then I would feel really bad if I knew a call I made had put you back in a bad situation.” He spoke in a soft tone and then fell silent for a few moments as he appeared to be thinking something over. He returned the focus of his attention back to her soon afterwards. ”I really should call them…..but I won’t for now.” He said; clearly unsure as to whether he was making the right decision or not.

He laughed a little bit when she told him how cold she was. ”I’m not surprised you’re feeling cold, especially considering you were out in that storm. It’s never a good idea to be out in weather like that for too long, so I guess it’s lucky I found you when I did. Who knows what would have happened to you if I didn’t. Not only would your cold have gotten worse, possibly developing into something more, but there’s always the possibility the authorities could have eventually picked you up at some point. Anyway, you don’t have to thank me for anything Kaia. It’s really no problem, and besides, it’s not as if I was going to be using this room anyway. I’ve only just recently moved here myself.” He flashed her a small smile as he moved over to the edge of the bed just in case she wanted to lay down. ”You know if you’re feeling cold, I could always get you more blankets. I could even get you a mug of hot chocolate to warm you up, or I could turn up the heating for you. I really don’t mind Kaia. It wouldn’t take me that long to make a mug of hot chocolate anyway, and there are extra blankets in the closet just over there.” He said, pointing to the walk in closet that was against the left wall of the bedroom. ”And if you want to go back to sleep, I’ll go back into my own room if you want me to. I just came in here when you were sleeping because you were having a nightmare, so if you want me to leave if you want to go to sleep, just say so okay.”

Kaia found herself giving a small smile at how pure and innocent Harley sounded. He didn't sound at all as jaded about life as she was and yet she was younger. She hated to be the one to point out that the law wasn't as protective as it was supposed to be. "It's my word against his Harley, he's got resources, status, they wouldn't believe me over him. Hell, he'd probably just pay off a judge." She shook her head, "I can't go back... I'd rather die out there then go back... please don't call anyone..."

When he told her about his thoughts and then said that he wouldn't call for now, she sighed in relief. Even though she was cold, when he talked about getting up and getting something for her or leaving the room so she could sleep, despite how weak she felt, her hand shot out to his arm and closed around it as best she could. Shaking her head even as her body shook, she pleaded, "Please don't leave me alone. I'm afraid... afraid that I'll wake and find it's not real... that I'm not safe."

Kaia's hand loosened but didn't move, only loosening because she was so weak. "Please stay. I haven't seen or felt kindness in so long... I think if I sleep I would rather wake up seeing proof I'm safe..." She closed her eyes for a moment as she shivered and licked dry lips, swallowing a couple times before she could speak again, "I'll get warm soon enough, I may get sick but I might not, I used to use everything I could to build my immune system so didn't get sick as often as others. I just need to get warm and sleep... feel safe."

She opened her eyes and yawned slightly before asking again, "Please don't leave me alone. We can both sleep. Extra blankets would be good but I need to know... to know someone is here."

There was a small part of Harley that did genuinely want to call someone to let them know what had happened to Kaia, but then he found himself thinking about what she had said. It really did make him wonder who her father was if he was anything like she said he was. He remained silent for a few moments more before he finally responded to what she had said. Looking back to her, his eyes met with hers. ”Okay, I won’t call anyone Kaia. The last thing I would want would be for you to end up back in the hands of your father.” He paused for a moment after saying this to her. ”I have no idea who your father is if he has the kind of power and status you say he has. I’m not too sure I would want to know who he is anyway, but don’t worry too much because you don’t have to go back to him again. You can stay here for as long as you like. You can have this room considering it’s a spare room anyway, and with any luck, your father may even come to think that you could have…umm….well…..died in this storm.” He did feel bad for saying such a thing, but he was also the type of person who would usually speak his mind.

He was a little surprised when he suddenly felt her hand closing around his arm. Harley turned to look back at her with a look of concern on his face. ”Kaia….I’m not leaving you. I was just going to make you a hot drink to help to warm you up.” He shifted on the bed and turned to face her. A warm smile soon formed on his face. ”You are perfectly safe here. Hardly anyone knows me around here and there is no-one that knows you are here. You’re safe here and you won’t have to wake up to a real life nightmare anymore.” He did his best to comfort her as he sat beside her in the bed. ”I will stay here with you if that is what you really want Kaia, and I promise I won’t leave you alone, but you really could do with something to warm you up. I don’t mind getting the extra blankets from the closet for you, but are you sure you don’t want a hot drink? I could go and make you one now. It won’t take me five minutes to make, and you can even come with me down into the kitchen if you’d like….but if you do, I would have to get you something you can put on. I think I have some old t-shirts in my closet in my room that should fit you.”

Harley moved over to the side of the bed, causing her hand and arm to fall back to her side. He rose to his feet once he was at the side of the bed and then he made his way over to the closet in the room. Once he was at the closet, he pulled it open and looked inside. There really wasn’t much in the closet, but just like he had said, there were extra blankets in there. Harley pulled out all four of the extra blankets and carried them all over to the bed. As soon as he had reached the bed, he set the blankets down on the bed and turned his attention back to her once more. ”I will put these on the bed for you and hopefully they will help to warm you up.” With that said, Harley started hto puht theh blankehts on the behd forh her. He spread the blankets out hon hthe bed and put one blanket on top of the other on the bed. It took him a few minuthes to puth all of the blankets on hhte bed, buth he smiled as soon as h had put them all on the behd. ”There you go Kaia.” He didn’t know how much warmer the extra blankets would make her, but hhe was certain that they would definithely help. ”Now, I just need to pop down the hallway to the bathroom to pick up a bucket for you just in case you are sick sometime through the night. I won’t be a minute okay.” Harley spoke softly before quickly turning around and walking out of the room she was in. He ran down the hallway to the bathroom and picked up the bucket that sat just beside the bathtub. With the bucket in his hand, he headed back to the bedroom where he had left Kaia and pushed open the door and walked back inside. Closing the door behind him, he walked bhack over to the bed and set the bucket down on her side of the bed.

Harley walked back around the bed to the side he had been laying on and then he climbed back into the bed beside her. ”I told you I wouldn’t be too long. Anyway, the bucket is there if you are sick okay.” He said to her. ”If you’re tired, why don’t you lay down and try to get back to sleep. I will be here to hold you if you want me to.”

Kaia sighed in contentment as Harley agreed not to tell anyone about her being there, not calling anyone at all. She gave a soft wry smile and shook her head, “Unfortunately, until he sees a body he would never believe I was dead, but thank you. I feel much more content knowing that you’ll keep my secret Harley.”

Harley was going out of his way to help her and she knew that there was nothing she could do to pay him back. She watched him move to get the blankets, reached to attempt to help with placing them on the bed but she was too weak to be of much help. When he mentioned getting her something hot to drink she shook her head, “I would be fine with a drink after I have rested, thank you though for being so thoughtful.” With the extra blankets she began to feel warmer and sighed in contentment, closing her eyes as she lay back.

He moved too quickly when she would have stopped him and told him not to concern himself with that but he was gone before she could say anything. When he returned she offered him a gentle smile and there was a part of her that said she should turn down his offer to hold her but she remembered when she woke up how safe she felt until she worried her father had found her.

Kaia looked at him for a moment while she considered her options before she mentioned, “You need sleep too, if you think you can sleep alright here with me and lay down, I wouldn’t mind you holding me… I felt safe before I feared my father had found me. I know I woke you up when you were sleeping and did you sleep much or at all before you found me?”

Harley didn’t really know who Kaia’s father was, but he knew he couldn’t have been a good person. He sighed softly as she told him that her father wouldn’t believe she were dead until he saw a body. He genuinely did feel sorry for her. Sorry that she had such a terrible father. Even though he barely knew her, Harley couldn’t help but feel slightly responsible for the younger girl. Sure, she may only have been a few years younger than he was, but he still felt as if he had to keep her safe. ”As bad as it is for me to say; it is unfortunate that he won’t believe you are gone until he sees proof. But don’t worry too much Kaia as I will do all I can to keep you safe here. Like I said before, there is no-one here who knows who I am, and as long as your picture doesn’t end up plastered across the news, then you should be okay here.” He shifted on the bed, pulling his leg up and underneath him. ”When I take you out with me, if anyone asks, I will just say that you are…..my second cousin. We will say you were staying with your parents but they had to go away so they asked me to look after you for the months in which they are away,” He didn’t really know what she was going to make of his suggestion, but he hoped she would be okay with it.

Harley genuinely had no idea how long Kaia had been outside in the storm. It was just like he didn’t know how long she had been on the run either. Harley did want to ask her, but he figured it would probably be better to ask her after she had rested up. After all, he could see how tired she was, and on top of that, she almost looked as if she may have been coming down with something too. He knew that any questions he might have for her could wait. He smiled softly as she told him how she could wait for a hot drink until after she had rested. ”That is fine, really it is. I will make you a hot drink in the morning then. Anyway, you don’t have anything to thank me for Kaia. I don’t mind doing all of this for you as it would have been wrong to just leave you out there,” He looked down at her as she had laid back after he had put the extra blankets on the bed. ”Kaia….how long were you out there? How long have you been running from your father?”

He had absolutely no idea if she would want him to stay and hold her again as she slept. It was probably why he had asked her in the first place. There was a part of Harley that was almost expecting her to tell him she didn’t want him to stay with her, so he did feel a little surprised when she actually told him something different. He thought on what she said for a moment before he finally nodded his head. ”Okay, I will stay here with you tonight Kaia….just as long as you are sure you actually want me to stay with you,” He spoke ever so softly to her as he had said this to her.

A small smile formed on his face and he shook his head in response to her question. ”I am okay, really I am. I have slept for an hour maybe, but it could be a little longer. I was concerned about you, so I stayed awake to see if you were going to be okay. When I could see that your nightmares had stopped, I tried to get to sleep. I did eventually manage to drop off to sleep, but then you woke up. I was heading up to bed before I found you outside. As I was heading upstairs, I heard you outside. I found you out there, brought you in here…and uhh….well uhh….your clothes were soaked right through….so I had to get you out of them….but don’t worry as I didn’t look. Anyway, I dried you as best I could and put you into this bed. I returned to my room but then you started having a nightmare, so I came back in here,” He spoke softly as he laid down beside her. Harley turned on his side so that he was facing her and smiled a little. ”Come on Kaia, come and get some sleep. You will probably feel better in the morning.”